Tag: analyst

Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,237.51 per ounce, as of 0401 GMT, after having hit its lowest since Dec. 4 at $1,232.39 on Friday. Gold has not recovered yet from Friday’s decline, said analyst Helen Lau of Argonaut Securities, adding that prices were moving on the strong dollar over the weekend. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against other major currencies, was just below the 19-month high of 97.71 hit on Friday. Lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding n

Gold prices inched lower on Monday, as the dollar held firm below a 19-month peak on safe-haven demand amid concerns of a global economic slowdown, and as investors awaited cues on U.S. interest rate hikes from a Federal Reserve meeting later this week.

Spot gold was down 0.1 percent at $1,237.51 per ounce, as of 0401 GMT, after having hit its lowest since Dec. 4 at $1,232.39 on Friday.

U.S. gold futures were little changed at $1,241.3 per ounce.

Gold has not recovered yet from Friday’s decline, said analyst Helen Lau of Argonaut Securities, adding that prices were moving on the strong dollar over the weekend.

Weaker-than-expected economic data out of China and Europe and fears of a possible U.S. government shutdown enhanced appeal for the U.S. currency, which has played the role of a safe-haven asset in recent times.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against other major currencies, was just below the 19-month high of 97.71 hit on Friday.

Markets will closely watch the future trajectory of U.S. monetary policy at the Federal Reserve’s Dec. 18-19 meeting where the board is set to raise interest rates by 25 basis points.

“Markets will rally on the back of dollar weakness after the central bank signals a more dovish stance, but the advance will fall back quickly as global growth concerns reassert themselves,” INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir said in a note.

Lower interest rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion and weigh on the dollar.

Spot gold is biased to break a support at $1,232 per ounce, and fall to a lower support zone of $1,224-$1,228, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

Meanwhile, hedge funds and money managers switched to net long position in Comex gold in the week to Dec. 11, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) said on Friday.

This was the first time gold speculators held a net long position since July, and the strongest since June.

“Uncertainties of the trade war are still weighing on the market,” said Dick Poon, general manager, Heraeus Metals Hong Kong Ltd.

“It is getting close to Christmas time, so it is getting super quiet in the market. Investors reduce their inventories as much as possible before the year ends.”

Among other precious metals, spot palladium gained to $1,238.20 per ounce.

Silver declined marginally to $14.56 per ounce, while platinum fell 0.6 percent to $782.50 per ounce.

GE shares jumped 12 percent in premarket trading to $7.41 from Wednesday’s close of $6.71 a share. GE shares fell as low as $6.66 this week, which was their low close during the financial crisis. GE cut its dividend to a penny officially last week, a move which alienated many of its longtime shareholders. Tusa said in the note that he sees “upside risk” to the stock of $8 and “downside risk” of $5. In the meantime, J.P. Morgan is holding to a GE price target of $6 a share.

Longtime bearish analyst Stephen Tusa of J.P. Morgan upgraded shares of General Electric to neutral from underweight on Thursday and removed the stock from the firm’s short idea list, saying the embattled industrial giant now has a more “balanced risk reward at current levels.”

“Key to the story, in our view, is the outcome of ‘known unknowns’ in near term, which are better understood and around which debate is more balanced, as opposed to being overlooked by most bulls in the past,” Tusa wrote in a note Thursday.

“We now believe a more negative outcome one these liabilities (equity dilution is one) is at least partially discounted, and it’s possible the company can execute its way through an elongated workout that limits near-term downside,” Tusa added.

GE shares jumped 12 percent in premarket trading to $7.41 from Wednesday’s close of $6.71 a share.

Tusa put out a bearish note on GE in May 2016 when the stock was above $30 that questioned the conglomerate’s earnings and cash flow outlook. As the shares plummeted, Tusa gained a following on Wall Street with his later calls, such as that the dividend would have to be cut, coming true. His notes on the company will often move the stock on the days they come out.

GE shares fell as low as $6.66 this week, which was their low close during the financial crisis. GE cut its dividend to a penny officially last week, a move which alienated many of its longtime shareholders.

Tusa said in the note that he sees “upside risk” to the stock of $8 and “downside risk” of $5. In the meantime, J.P. Morgan is holding to a GE price target of $6 a share. Tusa said the firm is “increasingly assuming a material equity raise could be necessary.”

“While we think there would be near-term downside, we also think there could be support at a lower level, and likely a benefit of the doubt for new management with a higher multiple on lower earnings and [free cash flow],” Tusa added.

GE has repeatedly denied it has plans for an equity raise. Culp said last month that questions about GE’s liquidity are understandable given the company’s position. But he said the “fact the we got $20 billion of cash” on hand from asset sales gives Culp confidence that GE has the leverage it needs to forge a turnaround.

Gold prices were steady on Monday, having touched a fresh five-month peak early in the session, as the dollar weakened after a soft U.S. jobs report fuelled speculation that the Federal Reserve may stop raising interest rates sooner than expected. The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates at its Dec. 18-19 meeting, but the focus is on how many rate hikes will follow in 2019. Gold tends to gain when rate hike expectations recede because lower rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding

Gold prices were steady on Monday, having touched a fresh five-month peak early in the session, as the dollar weakened after a soft U.S. jobs report fuelled speculation that the Federal Reserve may stop raising interest rates sooner than expected.

Spot gold inched up 0.1 percent to $1,248.59 per ounce, as of 0813 GMT, after hitting its highest since July 11 at $1,250.55 earlier in the session.

U.S. gold futures rose 0.1 percent to $1,253.4 per ounce.

Weak data points from the United States have been putting pressure on the dollar index which is proving to be positive for gold, said Ajay Kedia, director at Kedia Commodities in Mumbai, adding that: “we expect a resistance level of $1,270 before the upcoming Fed meet.”

The dollar slid against the euro and the yen after data showed U.S. non-farm payrolls increased by 155,000 jobs last month, below economists’ median forecast of 200,000 jobs, and the wage increase was softer than expected.

Some Fed policymakers have struck a cautious tone about the economic outlook, possibly flagging a turning point in the monetary policy.

The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates at its Dec. 18-19 meeting, but the focus is on how many rate hikes will follow in 2019.

Gold tends to gain when rate hike expectations recede because lower rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding bullion. Lower interest rates also tend to weigh on U.S. yields and the dollar, in which gold is priced.

“There is also some safe-haven demand coming back in gold,” said Argonaut Securities analyst Helen Lau.

Global stocks extended their slump on worries over slowing growth and fears that a fresh flare-up in tensions between U.S. and China could quash chances of a trade deal.

“A number of tailwinds are in place for it (gold) to move significantly higher during the month including falling U.S. interest rates, a declining or at least a stalling dollar, wobbly U.S. equity markets,” INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir said in a note.

“Over the course of December, we see prices trading between $1,230-$1,285 per ounce.”

Gold edged higher on Thursday as growing risk aversion weighed on the dollar, while palladium held ground at a premium to the bullion. Spot gold was up 0.2 percent at $1,239.86 per ounce, as of 0429 GMT, while U.S. gold futures were 0.2 percent higher at $1,244.9 per ounce. “Markets are trying to consolidate, trying to push up higher for now,” said Benjamin Lu, a commodities analyst with Phillip Futures. The dollar declined against the safe-haven yen as a spike in risk aversion pressured equitie

Gold edged higher on Thursday as growing risk aversion weighed on the dollar, while palladium held ground at a premium to the bullion.

Spot gold was up 0.2 percent at $1,239.86 per ounce, as of 0429 GMT, while U.S. gold futures were 0.2 percent higher at $1,244.9 per ounce.

“Markets are trying to consolidate, trying to push up higher for now,” said Benjamin Lu, a commodities analyst with Phillip Futures.

A balance between a host of factors such as a rate hike by the U.S. Federal Reserve in December, uncertainty about trade tensions between Washington and Beijing, and a flattening yield curve has helped create a premium for the bullion, Lu added.

Fed policymakers will gather at a Dec. 18-19 meeting, at which the central bank is widely expected to raise interest rates.

“Although a rate hike is already priced in, markets will be closely watching the meeting for clues on rate hike timings in 2019,” said Lukman Otunuga, a research analyst at FXTM, adding that: “if the meeting echoes a similar message to (Chairman Jerome) Powell’s dovish shift, gold has the potential to shine into 2019.”

The dollar declined against the safe-haven yen as a spike in risk aversion pressured equities and U.S. Treasury yields. The spread between the two-year and five-year Treasury yields inverted this week and the two-year/10-year spread was at its flattest in more than a decade amid a sharp fall in long-term rates.

“An yield curve inversion indicates higher borrowing cost in short term, so for safe-haven assets in the longer run it’s going to be very positive,” Phillip Futures’ Lu said.

Spot gold may test a resistance at $1,245 per ounce, a break above which could lead to a gain into a range of $1,253-$1,258, according to Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao.

Meanwhile, palladium continued to be more valuable than gold after outshining the yellow metal for the first time since 2002 on Wednesday, with prices soaring by around 50 percent in less than four months to record levels.

Spot palladium rose 0.1 percent to $1,245.00 per ounce, hovering near its record high hit in the previous session.

The market now awaits Friday’s U.S. non-farm payrolls data for November, which is expected to show unemployment remains at 3.7 percent.

“Investors are seen adopting a cautious stance ahead of the U.S. jobs report which could offer insight over the health of the U.S. labour force,” said FXTM’s Otunuga.

Amongst other metals, silver fell 0.7 percent to $14.41 per ounce, while platinum extended losses into a third session, declining 0.7 percent to $795.00 per ounce.

Stifel on Wednesday published a note saying it has lowered its rating for Facebook shares from “Buy” to “Hold,” saying political and regulatory blowback could restrict how the company operates in the long term. “Facebook’s management team has created too many adversaries — politicians/ regulators, tech leaders, consumers, and employees — to not experience long-term negative ramifications on its business,” the firm said in a note. Stifel also published the latest results from an on-going survey

Stifel on Wednesday published a note saying it has lowered its rating for Facebook shares from “Buy” to “Hold,” saying political and regulatory blowback could restrict how the company operates in the long term.

“Facebook’s management team has created too many adversaries — politicians/ regulators, tech leaders, consumers, and employees — to not experience long-term negative ramifications on its business,” the firm said in a note.

The lower rating comes after a rough year in which Facebook has experienced numerous scandals, a 30-million user data breach, declining and stalling growth in key markets, an executive exodus and its worst stock performance since going public in 2012.

Stifel also published the latest results from an on-going survey of Facebook users.

The results showed 79 percent of those surveyed now believe Facebook’s impact on society is neutral or negative, compared to 73 percent in survey results published by the firm in January. The survey also found that 60 percent of respondents said they rarely or never used Facebook Stories, Marketplace or video, which are some of the company’s key new products.

Stifel said there is no downside to holding Facebook shares, but the firm no longer believes the company’s upside is what it once was.

“We believe Facebook will struggle to return to the company that it once was or that investors expected it to be in the long run,” the note reads. “We prefer Amazon, Alphabet, and Netflix, as U.S.-based mega caps with similar thematic trends and more stable operating environments.”

Casino stocks started the week on a roll. One analyst is wagering that this is the beginning of a bigger move for two of those gambling stocks as they transform their businesses. Wald said Las Vegas Sands could see some upward moves on a near-term basis, but he’s still steering clear given its falling trend line. Trade tensions between the U.S. and China throughout this year have kept the Macau-exposed casino stocks under pressure. A move to $64 would be a nearly 10 percent rally from Las Vegas

Wynn Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, MGM, and Melco Resorts & Entertainment blasted higher on strong revenue out of Macau in November and the temporary relief of trade tensions between the U.S. and China.

One analyst is wagering that this is the beginning of a bigger move for two of those gambling stocks as they transform their businesses.

“Macau basically has been a second coming for both Wynn and LVS,” Boris Schlossberg, managing director of FX strategy at BK Asset Management, said on CNBC’s “Trading Nation” on Monday.

Macau should continue to boost those stocks as it transitions from a primarily casino and gambling destination to a tourist hot spot, Schlossberg said.

“Macau revenue is all gambling which means that they’re really lagging the whole entertainment and dining gambit revenue that Las Vegas gets. I think that’s going to be coming,” he said.

But Ari Wald, Oppenheimer’s head of technical analysis, does not recommend any of the casino stocks, though he says their technical setup does have a bullish lean.

“It’s not a gamble that we’re taking, but it does look like, given how beaten up they were, they are due for some counter-trend relief,” Wald said on “Trading Nation” on Monday.

Wald said Las Vegas Sands could see some upward moves on a near-term basis, but he’s still steering clear given its falling trend line.

Trade tensions between the U.S. and China throughout this year have kept the Macau-exposed casino stocks under pressure. Las Vegas Sands and MGM are down 16 percent in 2018, Wynn has dropped nearly 30 percent and Melco has fallen 33 percent.

“Las Vegas Sands, although below a falling 200-day moving average, [is] encouraging at least from a trading basis. You are seeing that surge above the 50-day moving average [which] could make the case for a little bit more upside to $64,” said Wald.

A move to $64 would be a nearly 10 percent rally from Las Vegas Sands’ Monday close.

Apple investors shouldn’t give up on the tech giant, because the stock is poised to go higher, analyst Daniel Ives told CNBC on Tuesday. “This is what I view as more of a golden buying opportunity rather than a time to throw up the white flag,” the managing director of equity research at Wedbush Securities said on “Power Lunch.” Apple shares have taken a hit recently, as investors became concerned about the iPhone cycle and lack of transparency on individual unit sales figures. While demand for

Apple investors shouldn’t give up on the tech giant, because the stock is poised to go higher, analyst Daniel Ives told CNBC on Tuesday.

“This is what I view as more of a golden buying opportunity rather than a time to throw up the white flag,” the managing director of equity research at Wedbush Securities said on “Power Lunch.”

Apple shares have taken a hit recently, as investors became concerned about the iPhone cycle and lack of transparency on individual unit sales figures. The stock closed down more than 4 percent on Tuesday at $176.69, losing $38.5 billion in implied market value.

However, Ives is standing by his price target of $275 over the next 12 months. If realized, it would eclipse Apple’s $233.47 peak before the October sell-off.

Analysts at HSBC on the other hand, thinking that the iPhone maker needs a new product, decided to cut their 12-month price target on the stock from $205 to $200. The analysts said that “Apple’s iconic hardware growth is broadly over for now.”

Ives is optimistic that millions of iPhone customers will be ready to upgrade their devices within the next 18 months. He pointed out that the Apple ecosystem encompasses an estimated 750 million active units.

While demand for the iPhone XR has “lagged,” Apple has an opportunity to boost sales going into the end of the year, he said.

“That’s why right now, going into [the] holiday season, this is definitely a pivotal sort of fork-in-the-road time for Apple to make sure this demand starts to hit, which so far has been soft,” Ives said.

The tech giant recently increased the amount of credit it is willing to offer customers who are trading in older iPhones for the new models.

The future of OPEC is on shaky ground, an analyst told CNBC on Monday, after Qatar abruptly announced it would sever ties with the influential oil cartel after almost six decades. Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi said at a news conference Monday that Doha would leave OPEC on January 1, 2019. The decision comes just days before OPEC and its allies are scheduled to hold a much-anticipated meeting in Vienna, Austria. “This is big,” Andy Critchlow, head of EMEA energy content at S&P Global Plat

The future of OPEC is on shaky ground, an analyst told CNBC on Monday, after Qatar abruptly announced it would sever ties with the influential oil cartel after almost six decades.

Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi said at a news conference Monday that Doha would leave OPEC on January 1, 2019. The decision comes just days before OPEC and its allies are scheduled to hold a much-anticipated meeting in Vienna, Austria.

Its next biggest rival, Ford, reported a 7 percent fall in sales but said overall industry sales should have reached at least 17.5 million annualized – above economists’ expectations of 17.2 million. “Relative to the macro-economic outlook, Ford was upbeat on its monthly sales call, suggesting relative consumer resiliency in the face of rising interest rates,” J.P.Morgan analyst Ryan Brinkman said. While Ford blamed weak sales of Focus sedans and Mustang sports cars for its November sales declin

Holiday season deals propped up U.S. auto sales in November, limiting the scale of annual falls at some carmakers and putting overall figures on course to top analysts’ expectations, numbers from several top producers showed on Monday.

Number one carmaker General Motors posted a roughly 1 percent rise in sales, according to a source familiar with the numbers, compared with a fall of more than 2 percent expected by analysts.

Its next biggest rival, Ford, reported a 7 percent fall in sales but said overall industry sales should have reached at least 17.5 million annualized – above economists’ expectations of 17.2 million.

Bolstered by Washington and Beijing signaling a three-month truce in their trade war over the weekend, shares in both companies rose by more than 4.5 percent in morning trade in New York.

U.S. sales had been expected to fall for a second year running as higher interest rates and tariffs raise prices at a time when many car owners have already replaced their older vehicles.

A continuing boom in SUV sales, however, continues to help carmakers and November traditionally benefits from efforts by dealers to clear out stock ahead of the new year.

Honda and Toyota both reported declines – of 9.5 and 0.6 percent respectively, but Fiat Chrysler, whose sales have been surging on the back of its strength in jeeps and SUVs, rose 17 percent.

While Ford blamed weak sales of Focus sedans and Mustang sports cars for its November sales decline, it indicated full-year industry numbers for 2018 could be on par or slightly higher then a year ago.

Charlie Chesbrough, senior economist at Cox Automotive, owner of the Autotrader online automobile market and the Kelley Blue Book car valuation service, said light vehicle sales had beaten his forecast, helped by strong numbers for trucks and compact utility vehicles.

Automakers including Ford have reduced production of traditional passenger cars due to slumping sales, while gradually moving to larger SUVs and trucks, which tend to be more profitable.

Ford last month reshuffled workers at several of its plants to meet rising demand for pickup trucks and large SUVs.

Honda said its sales fell 9.5 percent to 120,534 vehicles, more than doubling the pace of decline as it was hurt by lower volumes on passenger cars like its Civic.

Jeff Schuster, head of global vehicle forecasts at industry consultant LMC Automotive, said slower interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in 2019 and a pause in any new tariffs could help stabilize a slowing auto market.

He made that call in 2011 as Morgan Stanley’s auto analyst, saying Tesla was set to “shake-up” the “complacent” auto industry. The prediction earned Jonas a reputation inside Morgan Stanley as “kind of a mad scientist,” he said in a recent interview. Now he’s doing it again – but with the space industry. After that, Jonas started gathering other Morgan Stanley analysts to help him research the space industry. This year has been “very, very active in terms of capital formation and then technologi

Adam Jonas became famous – and to some, infamous – on Wall Street when he called for Tesla’s stock to more than double to $70 a share.

He made that call in 2011 as Morgan Stanley’s auto analyst, saying Tesla was set to “shake-up” the “complacent” auto industry. He continued to follow up with bullish price target increases as the electric automaker’s shares rose. While Tesla has been a volatile stock in the years since, it now trades at around $350 a share.

The prediction earned Jonas a reputation inside Morgan Stanley as “kind of a mad scientist,” he said in a recent interview. Now he’s doing it again – but with the space industry.

His interest in Tesla naturally led him to SpaceX, Elon Musk’s other ambitious transportation venture, which Jonas believes is bound to affect the future of the electric car maker. SpaceX is getting into broadband technologies at the same time the auto industry and Tesla are pushing into advanced technologies like autonomous driving.

“We didn’t start out one day thinking ‘hey, let’s do space,’ necessarily,” Jonas said. While visiting Tesla in 2010, Jonas stopped by SpaceX. After that, Jonas started gathering other Morgan Stanley analysts to help him research the space industry.

His early efforts may be about to pay off. This year has been “very, very active in terms of capital formation and then technological advancement” in the space industry, he said. And Morgan Stanley has been talking to many of the new space companies, including: OneWeb, Rocket Lab, Vector, FireFly Aerospace, Spaceflight Industries, Planet Labs, Spire Global, BridgeSat and NanoRacks – to name a few.